A Bitter Pill is a contemporary tragi-comic play exploring Fabricated or Induced Illness, (formerly known as Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy) through stylised performance, audience participation, and improvised
music. Lucy brings us into her wonderfully imaginative world, by playing games with the audience and inviting them to take on the roles of the various significant people in her life. Lucy is a bubbly child who loves going to story time at her local library, doing art at school, and eating chocolate for breakfast. But there's not much a seven year old can do to escape the harrowing isolation of medical child abuse. Her health begins to deteriorate: she chokes in her sleep, needs a wheelchair for her broken leg, and develops alopecia; but mum has induced and exaggerated all of these ailments.Lucy leaves us with a call to arms - to be her voice, and to help other children who might find themselves in
the same situation.